The use of steel utility poles has been drastically increased due to the threat of fire in rural areas of various states and counties as well the desire to generally reduce the use of wooden poles. With steel poles comes a safety issue for electrical workers due to the ground path created by the metal pole in close proximity to the conductors.
In an attempt to isolate the workers when working on steel poles, rubber blankets have been used to cover and insulate the working area that electrical workers might contact. However, rubber blankets are cumbersome to handle, difficult to install, and can easily damage by the cross arm hardware. Damaged blankets are both expensive and create a false sense of security for the electrical workers while engaged in the steel-pole-related activities.